Rep. Kristi Pursell’s statement on the start of the 2025 Legislative Session
St. Paul, MN - Today, at the start of the 2025 Legislative Session, State Representative Kristi Pursell (DFL - Northfield) joined her House DFL colleagues in denying quorum in response to the illegitimate power grab made by House Republicans - including the invalid election of a House Speaker and an unprecedented threat to deny the seat of a duly elected DFL Representative.
Rep. Kristi Pursell (DFL—Northfield), released the following statement:
“Today Republicans took illegitimate action on the House floor that effectively silenced the voices of half of Minnesota, including our district.
“Minnesota House Republicans have ignored the law, the constitution, and the ruling of Secretary of State Simon so they could turn a two-week advantage into an illegitimate two-year power grab. This is a constitutional crisis that the GOP has caused by bowing down to their extreme, MAGA base who are calling on them to throw out a duly elected DFL Representative. Further proceedings at the Capitol, including committees, are out of order and are not official business.
“I will not legitimize this unprecedented power grab. Until Republicans follow the State Constitution, I will continue working for our district outside Capitol grounds, meeting with community and local leaders to ensure our district and Minnesotans across the state receive continued and fair representation.”
House Democrats have engaged in power-sharing negotiations with Republicans since the conclusion of the 2024 election. This morning, DFL Leader Hortman offered a compromise to GOP Leader Demuth that would have Republicans run the Minnesota House for the next three weeks while they have a one-seat advantage, until after the outcome of a January 28th special election in a safe DFL district, at which point the Minnesota House would operate under the power-sharing agreement the two leaders negotiated over the past 60 days.
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